Mercenaries Adventures!
by SandShinobi21
Summary: Follow the story of a mercenary girl named Max and her best friend Ash as they travel the world of Ensemble. What happens when they meet a strange boy named Seth and he asks them for a favor? Find out by reading! With secrets and sarcasm galore, enjoy!
1. Chapter 1: Wow, rude much?

**A/N: YAY! I Finally got my first story up here! I Really hope you guys like this, it's an original! Hahaha, I really like Deadpool, so when I had an idea about mercenary's, I couldn't let it drop. This is by no means a crossover though. I Own and create everything in this story, so no stealing. Now please, read on and tell me what you thing in a PM or a review! Music, sharpies, sporks! Later! ;)**

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><p><strong>Chapter 1<strong>

"_**Hmmmm..." **_Max woke to the bright morning sun shining in her eyes. _**"To bright," **_thought max, _**"Oh shit, we overslept!"**_

She jumped up and looked around quickly, _**"It looks okay..." **_she thought with a sigh of relief, then she spotted her best friend Ash sprawled out on the ground still asleep. "Hey get up lazy butt! We over slept!" She yelled as she threw her pillow directly at his face.

"Huh? What?" He asked, still groggy. Then recognition sparked in his eyes, "Oh crap! We did?" He started looking around wildly.

Max sighed in exasperation. Ash was her best friend, and they had known each other for as long as she could remember. They were like siblings; in fact they even looked alike...except for one thing. Even though they had the same dark red hair and build, though Ash was two inches taller, one thing that separated them without a doubt was the fact that Max had two spiky white cat ears and a tail to match. She had, had them since she was born, and even though she couldn't remember her parents, her aunt told her they had them too. She and Ash had gotten used to them but she still got weird looks and insults from time-to-time.

"Hey, Max!" Ash yelled interrupting her momentary space out, "did you check on the clients yet?"

"Craappp, no not yet! Hang on, I'll go look," Max yelled as she ran off towards a tent set up in a clearing to the right.

The thing was, Max & Ash were what most people would call mercenaries. They would be hired by people who wanted guides, messengers, protection, assassins, etc. It wasn't an ideal life but it helped 'em make some money and it kept them on the move. It also helped that they actually enjoyed it a bit. Plus they got to work together so they figured it was alright for now.

Anyway, Max had run into the clearing and was just about to knock on the tent post when one of their clients walked out rubbing his eyes. "Hello," said Max, _**"Oh good this is the nicer of the two! Maybe he won't be that mad about the delay." **_Max thought.

"Oh hello," replied the client, "Good morning to you, is it time to go?"

"Well yes but," Max hesitated for a second, "Well there's been a small delay..."

"How small?"

"We kinda overslept...by two hours..."

"WHAT?" exploded the client, "You know we have to be at Logan Village by this afternoon! That's why we hired you and your friend as guides!"

"I Know, and we'll get you there but," started Max only to be interrupted by the client saying, "What time is it?"

"About 9:00," said Max checking her watch.

The client tried to calm down, "We have to be there by 2:00 at the latest. You and your friend have five hours to get us there or you don't get the rest of the money."

"What? But that's not fair!" Yelled Max in frustration.

"Too bad! Now can you get us there or not?" asked the extremely rude client.

"Well yeah if we hurry, but-"

"Alright fine. I'll inform my partner and we'll be ready to go in 30 minutes." Said the client, as he swept back into the tent. Max just stood there, frozen, in shock and frustration. _**"Well that was just rude! Even if we did oversleep!" **_She thought in anger.

She walked back to where Ash was rolling up his bedding, "So how'd they take it?" he asked. She gave him a look, "Let's put it this way, if they didn't still owe us money I might have my claws in one of them right now!" Max said as she made a face. Ash just started laughing, "I Take it not well then," He was still laughing when he had to duck to avoid the pillow Max threw at him for the second time that day. He finished packing while Max got up to get her pillow and rolled up the rest of her bedding. He put his backpack on his shoulders and strapped on his belt & sword. "Come on, they're not important enough to be ambushed, but we gotta be there on time to get the rest of our money so let's go! Hurry up woman!"

"Oh shut up, I'm coming! But they better watch it, I'm running out of patience for them." Max said irritably.

"Duly noted," said Ash, "Let's go!"

So with a sigh Max followed Ash to where the clients were waiting and they set off towards Logan Village.

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><p><strong>Alrighty, so I really hope ya'll liked that, and the next chapter should be out soon. Or if you can't wait go read it on Narutofic, Wattpad, or Quizilla! xD Please Rate, Review, and Read more! 3<strong>


	2. Chapter 2: Hit and, fight?

**A/N: _Hey Y'all! (very western eh? yea, no..) Anyway, here's my next chapter! This one is longer then the last but the two following might now be..it depends. Anyway I hope you enjoy it and R&R! I've got my new One Piece fanfic coming out later today as well, hopefully...haha! It's got my new OC in it! Her name's Kira!_**

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><p><strong>Chapter 2<strong>

"Jeez, they were rude! And after we got them there two hours early too! I Mean really!"

Ash & Max were walking down the street in Logan Village after dropping off their clients. Ash was whining while counting the money they had received as payment.

As soon as she heard this Max started laughing her heard off. "Haha, yes we got them here early but I think they were a little put off by the shortcut through the cliff where they almost fell off!"

"Hey, we caught them before they fell right?" Ash pouted. Max was gasping for breath by now, "Yeah. Sure. Whatever." She calmed down a bit, "So how much did we make?"

"Oh you know the usual fee for guards" He replied.

"What? That's a really small fee! We need to start charging more..." mused Max.

"No kidding!" said Ash as he rolled his eyes.

Max sighed, "Alright, nothing we can do about it now. HEY!" She suddenly yelled, "I Just remembered something!"

"What?" asked Ash, curiosity in his voice.

"It's 7:00 and I HAVEN'T eaten!"

Ash looked at her. "What?" she asked. "I Just remembered I haven't eaten either!" he yelled back at her. His stomach growled, "Max!" he whined, "find me food! Pleaseee!" he begged giving her a puppy dog look.

"Alright, alright, you big baby! Jeez, and I thought I was acting pathetic!" Max exclaimed, rolling her eyes, "You know you're the one with the money right?"

"Oh yeah! Well then what are you waiting for?" he asked. He started pulling her by the arm as he ran down the street. Max was stumbling along behind him until out of nowhere a boy a little younger than them ran out in front of them. He turned and saw them but it was to late. Ash tried to swerve, but he wasn't fast enough and he slammed right into the boy dragging Max down with him. The boy looked up as shock then anger passed over his features. "What the hell? Get off me!" he hissed.

Max got off of Ash and helped him up, then she helped the other guy up. The mystery guy tried to run as soon as he was on his feet.

"Hey! Get back here." yelled Max. She grabbed his arm and pulled him back.

"Hey, lemme go!" He tried to pull away from her grip.

"Hang on! You owe us an apology!" Max said, "what were you doing running out like that?"

"Let go! I Don't owe you an apology, or an explanation!" the guy snapped back pulling away from her. He tried to run again but this time Ash caught him. "Alright punk you nee..." Ash was cut off by somebody shouting, "Hey where'd that kid go?"

"There he is!" said somebody else, looking at where Ash was holding the kid by his shirt collar.

The trio looked up to see a rough looking group of sleazy men pointing and shouting at them.

"Oh shoot! Let me go dangit!" the guy said struggling hard. "Hang on..." said Ash. He pushed the kid behind him to Max. Max grabbed him while Ash slid in between them and the group of guys.

"Move it punk and you won't get hurt." said one of the men.

"Hmmm...I'm gonna go with no," Ash spat back at them, "now why do you want that kid?"

"He owes us some money." the same guy replied.

"Aw, I'm sure smart guys like you could make some more money somewhere else. Now leave the guy alone," Ash said threateningly.

"Nope. Now move it or we'll hurt you too." said the first guy. Him and his gang closed in on the three of them. Ash just smirked. Behind Ash the kid was looking at him like he was insane while Max was grinning.

"Will he be okay?" the kid asked Max. He was looking at the gang, there were about six of them and they were all surrounding Ash. "Well it's 6-1...I Say 3 minutes!" answered Max. She yelled the last part at Ash however.

"Huh?" asked the kid. He heard a crash and looked away from Max back to Ash. His jaw dropped in shock as he saw the first big guy unconscious on the ground. He dragged his gaze away from the guy on the ground and looked up just in time to see Ash sidestep another guy's punch to the face. Ash flashed a cocky grin and grabbed the guy's wrist swinging him into one of his buddies. They both went down, hard.

The guy looked at Max in absolute shock, but Max was looking down at her watch intently. He looked up again to see Ash roundhouse kick one of the guys. The guy fell on his buddy and lay still. The guy he fell on however, pushed him off and stood looking pissed. He walked over to the last guy standing and they came at Ash from both sides, but Ash just flipped over them landing behind one of the guys. Ash turned and kicked the guy in the back. He flew into the other guy and they both went down. The guy Ash hadn't kicked had also slammed his head on the ground and lay there unmoving.

Ash looked around and grinned. The guy just stood there speechless. "Hey Max!" Ash said, walking over to her, "how long?"

"3 minutes & 25 seconds!" she answered, "Your still slower then me!" she added as she laughed.

"Hey!" he pouted, "not everyone can be as quick and agile as a cat!" He stuck his tongue out at her.

The kid was still standing there in shock when he suddenly yelled, "DUDE! That was freakin' awesome!"

Max and Ash turned to look at him. He froze. They started walking towards him. He began to back away slowly. Suddenly he turned and tried to run, but Ash was faster and he caught him. He looked up at him. Ash was staring down at him and started to speak, "Okay, now onto you! What did they mean when they said you owed them money? Did you steal?"

"No!" snapped the guy, then he grinned sheepishly, "I just may have won more money then they wanted me to in a card game..." his voice trailed off. He looked at them and then they burst into laughter. He stared at them in confusion. Max saw his look and said, "We thought you did something wrong like stealing or something but instead you beat them at their own game! Priceless!" She was still laughing. He grinned finally and started laughing too.

He jumped suddenly, "Hey I know! To say thanks, let me buy you guys dinner! I Know all the best places to eat around here!" He looked at them and they were staring at him hungrily. All of a sudden, Ash jumped at him and grabbed his shoulders, "Oh my gosh yes!" Ash screamed at him, "I'm so hungry! Plus Max wouldn't feed me!" Max shot him a glare that he chose to ignore. The guy looked a little flustered but he recovered and said, "Okay then, follow me!"

They set off, but he suddenly looked back and said, "Oh and my name's Seth."

So Seth turned and led them down the street.


	3. Chapter 3: Pizza, or RAMEN?

**A/N: _Haha two chapters in one day! Score! Well, enjoy! And go check out my new One Piece fanfic! Pleassee! :) Ok, bye! R&R!_**

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><p><strong>Chapter 3<strong>

"Ramen!" "Pizza!" "I Want Ramen!" "Yeah, but I want pizza!" "Except, I don't care!" "But I do, so we're getting pizza!" "No, ramen!"

Seth sighed. He was leaning against a fence watching Max and Ash argue over what to eat. He was starting to wonder if this was really a good idea. Sure, he wanted to thank them for saving him earlier, but he also wanted to ask them an important question. He sighed again, "Why don't you guys just do rock-paper-scissors or something?" He asked.

"Alright fine we will! And I'm gonna win!" Ash shouted.

"Don't bet on it." Max screamed back at him.

They started the game. "Rock, paper, scissors...HA! I Won!" Ash yelled.

"Hey no fair! Best 2 out of 3?" Max asked him.

"No! I Won so we're eating ramen!" Ash replied. "Alright fine...jerk..." Max muttered under her breath.

They all walked over to the ramen shop. "One large miso ramen please!" Ash sang out as he sat down. Max and Seth sat down next to him. They had just finished ordering when Max asked, "Hey Seth, how old are you?" Now that it was calm, she was taking a second look at the guy. He actually didn't look much younger than them. He had shaggy brown hair and black eyes and was a few inches shorter then Ash.

"I'm 14. I'll be 15 in a month though." Seth replied, jolting Max back into reality. "Hey you're not much younger than us then!" said Max.

"So how did you meet your lovely companions from earlier?" Ash asked him.

"Well I had just gotten into the village and I was looking around when I saw a poster for a contest my 'Companions' were holding. I Needed some money so I decided to enter. I Advanced quickly and kept winning so they decided it was time for me to lose. When I didn't, they got mad and came after me. I Ran and then you know the rest. Thanks again by the way. That was amazing!" said Seth as he finished his tale.

"Haha! That was nothin'," Ash bragged, "I Didn't even have to use my sword. And you haven't even seen Max fight yet!"

"Wait, she can fight?" asked Seth.

"Well yeah. What did you think? She's with me isn't she?" Ash replied, confusion evident in his voice. "Yeah, but I mean...she's a girl!" Seth exclaimed.

All this time Max had calmly been eating her ramen and listening to Seth's story. At his outburst however, she stood up, slammed her hands down on the table, got in his face, and shouted at him, "What? You think just 'cause I'm a girl I can't fight? I Could kick your butt right here and now!" Seth looked shocked for a second then snorted and said, "I Doubt that. I'm much bigger then you." Max was fuming, "Okay that's it! Outside. Right now!" she shouted.

"Fine!" Seth retaliated lamely. Max crossed her arms and stormed outside. She waited as Seth paid for their meal. He was still treating them after-all. Ash walked behind Seth silently as he followed him out. He knew Seth was in trouble. Seth on the other hand, looked extremely confident. _**"His mistake..."**_ Ash thought with a sigh, _**"Max looks pissed. I Wonder if she'll hold back? She better, this guy doesn't look very strong."**_

"Alright, let's begin!" Max started shouting, "Here's the deal. I'm gonna take you down in 1 minute flat. And just to give you a shot, I won't use my knives, or my...shall we say, gifts."

Seth looked confused for a second, but he shook it off. Then he just looked mad, "Alright fine, but don't blame me when you get hurt." he said.

Max smirked, "We'll see..."

Ash stood off to the side, "Okay, now when I say go you start. Ready? Max go easy on him, he's new."

"Yeah, yeah. Whatever. Just start!" Max replied, waving off his comment. Ash sighed. "Alright GO!" he yelled as he dropped his hand.

Seth grinned. _**"This'll be easy." **_He thought. "Alright bring it!" He yelled at Max. Except Max wasn't there anymore. "What the...OOF!" he grunted. Max had gotten behind him and kicked him in the back. Seth stumbled forward in pain. He spun around to look at Max but she had disappeared again. He felt a tap on his shoulder and turned his head to be greeted with a blow to the jaw. He fell on his back and tried to get up but he couldn't. "Damn. Beaten by a girl..." Seth muttered. "The fight is over. The victor is Max!" Ash shouted.

Seth was trying to get up when a hand appeared in front of his face. He looked up and saw Max with a smirk on her face. Seth took her hand and she pulled him up. "So, still think girls can't fight?" She asked. "Nope. I Have officially changed my mind." Seth answered. "Good!" Max said happily. Ash was smiling off on the side. "Well this just doubles my reason to ask you guys!" Said Seth.

Max and Ash looked at him in confusion. "Ask us what?" questioned Ash. "I Have an important favor to ask of you both, but I can't ask it here. Let's go back to my hotel." Seth answered.

Ash looked at Max and shrugged. "Might as well go. I was getting bored anyway." "Okay then." agreed Max.

Seth grinned then turned and walked down another street. So for the second time that day, Max and Ash followed Seth to their destination.

**A/N: Ohh a question...hmm wonder what it could be? Oh wait, never mind, I already know! You have to find out!**


	4. Chapter 4: Oh suspense! Nah, not really

**A/N: WARNING-_FILLER CHAPTER! Yup, this is the shortest chapter so far and it's a totally pointless one at that! Haha. I Do encourage/ask that you please keep reading though, 'cause I promise the next chapter is so much better and much longer! I Also ask you to check out my One Piece fanfic, 'cause it seems to be getting pretty good feedback so far and I'm a little more focused on that one. lol I Actually already have up to chapter 6 of this story written, but I'm busy revising and writing the other, so please check back for updates! R&R Pretty Please! ^_^_**

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><p><strong>Chapter 4<strong>

Max and Ash had been following Seth for about 10 minutes when Seth stopped in front of a big building with the word, 'Hotel' written in big flashy letters on the front. "Well we're here!" Seth declared. Max mentally rolled her eyes at him, with a 'No, really?' thought, but said nothing.

"Cool, we can get a room here for the night. We were lost when we ran into you anyway." said Ash.

"Haha alright, and then we can go to my room and talk." added Seth.

They all went inside and Max went over to the desk to check in while the other two waited by the stairs. When she walked back over to them Seth asked, "What room do you have? We can drop off your stuff before we go to mine."

She nodded, "Alright. We've got room 316."

"Oh good, I'm 321 so it's close!" replied Seth.

They started walking up the stairs. After the first flight however, Max started whining, "Aww I hate stairs! Ash carry me please?" Seth was looking at her oddly whereas Ash just chuckled. "Alright fine. Get on my back." He said as he bent over.

"Yay! Piggy back ride!" Max squealed as she climbed on his back. Ash stood up and kept walking while keeping his balance on the stairs. Seth just followed in somewhat of a daze.

They finally reached the third floor and walked through the halls until the reached the door marked '316'. "Here we are." Said Ash. Max slid off his back and unlocked the door. She opened it and walked inside, the other two in tow. "Not bad. Not bad at all..." she commented.

The room was painted a deep red with white curtains hanging from the windows. Two beds with red & white comforters were in the middle of the room with a big TV in front of them. There was a small table in the corner with two chairs around it.

"Dibs on the window!" Ash yelled while throwing his backpack on the bed closest to the window.

"Aw no fair!" Max pouted. Ash just stuck his tongue out at her. Seth looked between the two and chuckled. "What?" asked Max. Seth kept laughing, "Sorry, it's just that you two act exactly like kids sometimes."

Max grinned, "Well what do you expect? This dork is like my brother in all ways except by blood!"

Ash had a mock hurt look on his face. "That's rude! I Am NOT a dork!" He stated firmly with a cross of his arms.

"Yeah, sure you're not." said Max sarcastically.

"Okay I get it now!" said Seth.

"Get what?" Max asked.

"Well at first I thought you guys were going out or something, but this makes way more sense!" he replied.

"Me and her/him?" Max and Ash asked/yelled at the same time. Seth nodded. The other two looked at each other for a second and then went into hysterics. Ash laughed so hard he fell off the bed while Max was trying to breathe. "Where...did you...get...that...idea?" She finally gasped out.

"Well with the way you two act it's hard NOT to think something like that!" Seth answered.

"Haha, maybe I guess, but like she said. We're pretty much siblings." said Ash. He was attempting to get back on his bed. And I say attempting because as soon as he would get on Max would push him off again.

"Maaaxxxxx! That's meeeaaannn!" He whined.

"Oh fine you baby! Sheesh, and you're supposed to be the older one." She replied as she finally let him get on the bed.

"FINALLY! Thank you!" He said as he climbed on.

"Wait he's older? Actually come to think of it, how old are you two? You said I was close to your age so are you 15 or 16?" Seth asked. He had been watching them quietly for a while but he was growing more and more curious about the pair.

"Yeah, he's the older one. Not by much though, just a week. And we're 15." Max answered him.

"Oh okay. So when are your birthdays?" He questioned.

"Well mine is January 21st and hers is January 28th so it's literally a week apart." Ash answered this time.

"That explains it. You guys are at the beginning of the year while I'm at the end. Mine is November 30th so it's coming up soon." Seth responded.

"Okay. So then where do you live?" Max asked.

"Ah, see that's a question I will answer when we get to my room. And speaking of my room," said Seth as he stood up from the chair he'd been sitting in, "are we gonna go or not?"

"Yeah let's go!" Yelled Max. She threw her backpack on her bed, grabbed Ash off his, and dragged him out the door to the hallway. Seth following close behind and shutting the door behind them.

"Off to room 321!" Max exclaimed, and they all marched down the hallway.


	5. Chapter 5: Who? What? Where! WHEN?

**A/N: _Yay, next chapter! The only reason I'm getting this one up before 'On Stranger Tides' is because I've already written 6 chapters of this. I Finished the next chapter of OST last night though, so that should come out soon. Now, please enjoy this chapter! It's a filler, but it's necessary for the next one where they actually begin their adventure. I Changed Max's outfit too, 'cause I didn't like the other one anymore. You can find pictures of Max and Ash, and soon Seth, on my deviantART page. (nightcreature5647 . deviantart . com)_**

**_Thanks for reading!_**

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><p><strong>Chapter 5<strong>

"319…320…Ah ha! 321, here we are!" Said Max triumphantly. The trio had been walking down the hallway in the same formation they left the other room. Max was still dragging Ash behind her and Seth was still following them looking lost in thought. He was trying to figure out how to explain the favor he wished to ask them. He was thinking so hard he didn't realize Max had been calling him.

"SETH!" He jumped, max had yelled right next to his ear. She was standing next to him giving him a confused look. "Yeah, sorry, what?" He asked as he got up from the ground where he fell after jumping so hard. "Finally!" She said, "Can we have the key so we can unlock the door?"

"Oh, yeah! Sorry 'bout that…" He went up to the door and unlocked it. "Here we go." He said as he opened the door and made a large sweeping motion with his arm telling them to go inside. Max and Ash stepped inside. The room looked exactly like theirs except the colors were black and white instead of red and white. Seth walked in after them and closed the door, and then he went over to the mini-fridge and pulled out three sodas. "Here," he said, offering them the drinks, "You should sit down. This could take a while…"

Ash nodded and sat down on the edge of the bed. Max followed the suit and plopped down behind him. Seth pulled the chair from the corner closer to the bed and sat down.

"Alright. So what do you want to ask us?" Questioned Ash.

Seth let out a sigh, "Well there's somewhere I need to go and I'd like you to act as my guards and come with me, but there are some things you should know first."

"Like?" Asked Max.

"Okay, so you know that in our land there are two very large territories, one a monarchy and the other a democracy, correct?" He asked while looking at them. They both shook their heads yes. "Great. Well I come from the one ruled by the king, the monarchy."

"That's the kingdom of _Athalia_ right?" added Ash.

"Right," answered Seth, "As you probably know then the kingdom of _Athalia_ is known for having two large army's, both led by extremely skilled generals. Well, One of those generals is my father." He paused when he saw the mildly shocked looks on their faces, but continued, "Your probably wondering what the son of such a person is doing all the way out here right?" He waited for an answer.

"Well yeah, the question came to mind." Stated Max bluntly.

Seth half smirked, "Well my dad sent me on…well I guess you could call it an errand, or a mission, whatever…anyway, I Just picked up something from one of our contacts in Shula, which as you know is the other larger territory, the democracy. Due to unforeseen circumstances, I'm now in a lot more danger then I was when I started out. That's where you guys come in. I'd like you to be my guards on my way back home to _Athalia_." Seth stopped to take large gulp of air and finish his proposition, "I Don't have much cash on me now, even with what I won from those idiots before, but when we get back home I can pay you a fair price for your troubles…So what do you say?" He asked quietly. He looked at them and waited for an answer.

Max was looking at Ash who was gazing up at the ceiling pondering what Seth had told them. After a minute or two of deep though he looked back at Seth and seemed to be sizing him up. Then he looked at Max, who looked back and nodded. Ash nodded back, looked straight at Seth, and said, "Okay, we're in."

Seth heaved a sigh of relief, "Really? That's great! Thank you so much!"

Max gave him an evil grin. He froze warily. "You might not be saying that when we get there. It's on the other side of the land! This is SO not gonna be cheap!"

Seth gave a nervous chuckle, whereas Max just sat there grinning. Suddenly he straightened up and snapped his fingers, "Oh yeah, I wanted to know if I could you guys one or two questions about yourselves? You don't have to answer, but I would like to get to know you both better if it's going to take a while to get home…" He trailed off, looking hopeful, with his question in the air.

Ash nodded, "Sure. Go for it man." Of course Ash already knew what the first question would be, Max did too, but they let him ask it anyway.

"Ok," started Seth, "So first up is, Why the heck do you have ears and a tail?" He was pointing to Max's pointy white cat ears.

Max sighed; it was the same question every time. Ash gave her a sympathetic glance, he knew she found it annoying that everyone had to question her on that subject, but he was proud she dealt with it patiently anyway. After a pause she finally answered, "Truthfully? I've got no bloody idea." Seth gave her a weird look. "I've had them since I was born. My aunt, who raised me, said that both my parents had them as well, but they disappeared when I was born. HOWEVER! Just because I don't know why I have them doesn't mean I don't know how to use them! I Can do some pretty cool stuff, if I do say so myself!" Max finished her explanation proudly.

"What kind of stuff?" Asked Seth with a curious look on his face.

"Um, okay, you know those 'powers' I was talking about when we fought?"

"Yeah…."

"This is what I meant. I'm extremely agile and flexible, and I can jump really high and always land on my feet. I Can transform into a cat whenever I want to, or gain a cat-like ability, claws, vision, ect. Plus these ears? They give me way better hearing then a normal human! The tail is…just a fun addition…I think." She finished explaining.

Seth looked a little doubtful. "Well I believe the ears and tail part, but can you really transform and stuff?" His voice had doubt clear in it.

Max giggled, "Yeah! Here I'll show you!" She jumped off the bed to the middle of the room.

"What do you mean sho…?" Seth never got to finish his sentence. After Max had jumped to the middle of the room she had closed her eyes. When he had started to speak Max had opened her eyes and they were glowing bright green. When they got even brighter her body started to…melt almost. She was over on all fours and getting smaller and smaller. She continued to contort until her body let out a bright light. Seth had to look away for a second, and when her turned back his eyes widened to plate size and his jaw dropped to the floor. Where Max had been standing there was now a small ginger colored she-cat, with white ears and white on the tip of her tail, staring at him with bright emerald eyes as she licked her paw and cleaned herself. Scattered around her were Max's clothes.

Seth was awe struck as the she-cat continued to wash her ears with her paw. When she was done, the cat looked up and said, in a rather smug voice, "Believe it now?"

Seth fell out of his chair in shock. Ash was, helpfully, over on the bed in stitches over his expression and reaction. When he could breathe again he spoke to the cat, "Hey Max, *chuckle*, go easy on him. He's still processing all this and I don't think he can handle the talking part yet."

The cat, now confirmed to be Max, looked at Ash with a smirk, or whatever a cat can do that's close to that, and answered, "Fine! How's this: Meow?" That set Ash off into peals of laughter again.

Seth was still gaping, trying to figure out how to respond to this new development. He tried calming a little, "You mean…you can transform, and talk?" he questioned.

"Pretty much. Cool right?" answered Max.

"Uh yeah…sure. I might find it 'cooler' when I'm not in shock though." He stated.

Max sighed, "Here I'll make it easier, I'll change back. Oh…and um…you might want to turn around…"

"Why?" Seth asked, clueless. Max just gave him a bland look and then glanced at her clothes scattered around the floor. Realization smacked into him then, followed by a blush crossing his face, and him turning around quickly.

"Thank you. Ash…" She added in a warning tone with a small glare. He chuckled as he turned slowly. "I Know, I know…I'm not looking. Even though I've seen it all before…" He finished with an evil smirk.

"ASH!" She yelled, while he chuckled. She huffed, glanced quickly to make sure they weren't looking, and then the flash of light was back, but only for a second as she changed back and threw on her clothes. "Okay, you can turn around again." She said.

After they had she smiled with fake sweetness and asked Seth, "So, want anymore demonstrations?"

"Uh no. I Believe you now." He answered, then added, "However, I am curious as to whether Ash has any powers."

Ash grinned, "Well I'd show you what I can do with a sword, but I think you want to live a little longer, and it would be a shame to ruin this nice room. I Could show you one of my interesting little talents though, If you want me to, of course." He said with excitement in his eyes. Max gave him a knowing look. Seth eyed them both warily, "Okayy…" he said slowly, "It's not gonna hurt right?" he asked.

"Oh no! Not at all! I Just need to be careful in the process, but that's not a problem." Ash assured him.

Seth gave a little relieved sigh, "Alright then, go for it."

Ash smiled widely then hurried around the room, picking things up, grabbing something from the back of the fridge, and then returning to sit on the bed. He turned to where they couldn't see his front and messed with the stuff he gathered for a few seconds. When he spun back around he had a little square box in his hand with a few wires sticking out and two buttons on top. He held it out to Seth proudly. "Ta-da! Your own personal explosive! Be careful with it." He exclaimed.

Seth stared with wide eyes, "You built a BOMB! In under a minute!" He yelled.

"Well sorta, it's not really big enough to do as much damage as a bomb, since I didn't have the right supplies and all, but it's powerful enough to blow the handle off the door. Maybe take the whole thing down, if you're lucky. But yeah, I guess you could call it a bomb." Ash answered him.

"Oh joy. Lovely. I have my own explosive. Wonderful. Nothing weird about that. Happens every day." He mumbled to himself as he took the box out of Ash's hand. Ash was confused by his words, whereas Max was just standing where she'd been, watching the whole exchange. She looked at Ash and muttered, "Yeah, and I'm the one who sends 'em into shock. Please." She rolled her eyes. Ash either didn't hear, or chose to ignore her.

Seth, having slowly recovered from all the shock, looked at them both and asked, "Is that all? Or do I need to brace myself again?"

Ash answered bluntly, "No, but we don't trust you with the rest yet, so you're okay for now. Plus, I don't think you could handle anymore if we wanted to tell you. I'd say we're done for now."

Seth shrugged, "Fair enough. So when do we leave?"

"We'll leave after we get some supplies, which you will be paying for!" Answered Max with an evil little chuckle. Seth hung his head in defeat and sighed, "Oh all right…"

"Good! Then we'll let you get some sleep now! Goodnight!" Cheered Ash. He jumped off the bed, grabbed Max by the wrist, and pulled her out of the room. She barely had time to yell a goodnight to Seth and slam the door behind them before they were gone and down the hall.

Seth just sat, looking at the door they had just exited out of. Then he sighed quietly and began to get ready for bed.

"_What did I get myself into?"_ he asked himself. He shook his head roughly, _"I must be going crazy. I'm actually starting to get used to them."_ He just sighed again and went into the bathroom.


	6. Chapter 6: Shopping Time!

**A/N: _Y'know. I'm really sad that nobody reads this story. Like really...Nobody. It's so sad...I have readers for it on other sites, but it'd be nice to have some here too. *sigh* Not that I'm actually talking to anyone here...Oh well, gonna post anyway. Enjoy anybody that looks at this._**

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><p><strong>Chapter 6<strong>

"AGH! WHAT THE HECK?" Seth leaped out of his bed, yelling, as a huge bucket of ice water was dumped on him, waking him from his peaceful slumber. He stood in the middle of his room, soaking wet, looking around frantically for the culprit. He spotted Max sitting at the small table coughing to try and disguise her laughter. Then he turned and saw Ash next to the bed laughing his butt off, not trying to disguise it at all, with a now empty bucket in his hands. Target Spotted. He glared spitefully at Ash and strode over quickly. He grabbed Ash by his collar, pulling him closer, and practically growled, "What the HELL was that for?"

Ash, having dropped the bucket upon being grabbed, raised his hands in front of him in surrender, still chuckling of course. "Ok, first, try to calm down," he started, "I'm really sorry about that, but it was the only thing I could think of to wake you up. No really, I swear!" he added at Seth's clear disbelieving look. "You wouldn't get up when we shook you, or heck even when we screamed in your ear! We really thought you might've been dead! So I figured this was the our only option…" finished Ash with a bit of caution, looking at him with pleading eyes.

Seth looked to Max for proof of what Ash was saying. She nodded, still trying not to laugh. He let Ash go and breathed out harshly in frustration, "You know, your options really suck. You couldn't have just kept shaking me or something?" he asked.

Ash gave him a bored look, "That would've taken longer, AND it wouldn't have been half as much fun!" Ash finished with a grin.

Seth went to lunge for him again, but was quickly held back by Max, who had left her chair when she saw him tense in anger again. He struggled for a little while, but then realized it wasn't doing anything to help so he relaxed.

Ash had, by this time, retreated to a corner of the room to escape Seth's wrath. When Seth finally stopped struggling he warily crept out of hiding.

Max made sure Seth was calm before she cautiously let him go. After she released him Seth stood there calming down for a minute.

"Hey listen man, I'm really sorry. I Swear. I Won't do it again." Ash apologized.

Seth let out a long sigh, "Yeah. Whatever."

Ash just shrugged and accepted it. Max chose then to cough, pointedly. They both turned to see her with an amused look in her eye and a smirk on her face. They gave her 'What?' looks. She just chuckled and said, "Wow Seth. Nice shorts."

Seth gave her a confused look before he glanced down. "Oh…crap." He looked up again with a large blush on his cheeks and grabbed a change of clothes before running into the bathroom, leaving a laughing Max and smirking Ash in his wake. See, in the process of trying to murder Ash, he forgot that he was clothed in nothing more than his boxers. As you can imagine, he was more than a little embarrassed. Especially since Max had held him back in that condition for a little while. This was awkward considering they only met the day before.

A Few minutes later he emerged from the bathroom, this time in dark blue cargo shorts, boots, and a white jersey. His was wet too, considering he just took a shower, and he also had a thick studded leather band on his wrist. He hadn't been wearing this the day before and the duo wondered if it had anything to do with what he'd told them last night, but they shrugged it off. Why would he want to keep something important in plain sight anyway? Or maybe…eh, either way they dropped it.

"So where we headed?" Asked Seth.

"We're going shopping!" cheered Max.

"Yeah," chimed in Ash, "remember? We need supplies for this _favor_ of yours, plus Max needs some new clothes and you need a jacket. No telling what the weather will be like." He finished.

"Alright," he agreed, at the exact same time Max whined, "Hey! What's wrong with my clothes?"

Ash gave her a light glare, "Max, you've been wearing the same clothes for a few months now. You need new a new outfit; this one is worn and old. Come on, you made me buy a new one at the last village we stopped in, now it's your turn!"

Max pouted and huffed out, "Fine, but only because it _has _been a while…"

Ash smiled at her, "Thank you! That was much less painful then I thought it would be!"

Max just glared at him.

Seth then pushed off the wall he'd been leaning against and walked in between the two, effectively breaking Max's glaring contest. He walked over to the bedside table and picked up a brown leather wallet and said, "Now that that's decided, let's go!" The duo nodded, squabble forgotten, and walked with him out of the room.

* * *

><p>Once outside the hotel the pair turned and looked at Seth with a questioning glance. Seth raised an eyebrow, so Max elaborated. "Well? Lead on, oh fearless one!" She said in a completely sarcastic tone.<p>

"Why me?" asked a very confused Seth.

"Because some of us here didn't get a chance to look around yesterday like they planned. They got run over instead." She finished with a smirk.

Seth reddened a bit at that. "Hey, I said I was sorry for that already! Not my fault!" he pouted.

Ash chuckled, "We know. She just likes teasing you. Honestly that's a good thing; it means she doesn't want to kill you all the time! You should be honored!"

Seth rolled his eyes, "Oh the joy! I'm not on her hit list."

"Oi!" yelled Max, "I could change that…"

Seth was about to respond again when Ash interrupted, "Alright people, break it up. Forget I said anything and let's just go find the stuff we need! Then we can focus on the important things, like getting lunch!"

Max sighed and rolled her eyes, but didn't say anything more to Seth. She did walk over and slap Ash upside the head though, muttering something about 'The boy always thinking with his stomach…' Ash rubbed the back of his head, and then motioned for Seth to lead the way, which he did, and they were finally on their way.

After Seth lead them to the shopping district they walked around and got all the supplies they'd need for the journey tomorrow relatively easy. Food, bug spray, matches, equipment for other things, and a bedroll for Seth as he didn't really have one. Most of the supplies just restocked what Max and Ash already had though. They basically got the necessities and also bought Seth a bigger pack.

Then it was time for clothes shopping! They walked around for a while and then came across a perfect jacket for Seth. It was a nice, thick, brown army jacket that fit him nicely. After that they tried to find a place to get Max a new outfit. They looked for an hour with no results, until the trio came across a side street they hadn't seen before. A lot of people were heading down the road, and others that were coming back to the main street all had shopping bags in their hands. Curious, the trio looked at each other and then walked down the road themselves. Five minutes later, seemingly out of nowhere, a huge building emerged in front of them.

"Oh. My. Gosh! THEY HAVE A FREAKING MALL?" shouted Max, "They have one, and we just spent AN HOUR looking for a STORE?"

Seth rubbed his ear, since Max had decided to yell right in it, whereas Ash just stood on his other side with a hopeless expression on his face and his jaw on the floor. "Seth," he started calmly, "YOU ARE _FIRED _AS A GUIDE!"

Seth got a bit defensive after that, "Hey, I didn't get to look around that much yesterday either! Just until I found that poster for the contest!"

Max rolled her eyes, "Whatever, let's just hurry up and get this over with. I Need lunch!" She then proceeded to drag both boys behind her and into the mall.

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><p>Once inside however, they hesitated. There were a lot of stores. Eventually they just picked one at random and walked in…and then walked right back out. All three wore horrified expressions.<p>

"Oh God. So. Much. PINK!" Said Max as she shuddered.

The boys had about the same reaction, "Yeah, and all those bows and ribbons and high heels and just…bleggg! I'm scarred for life now!" added Ash. Seth numbly shook his head in agreement. "Let's try a different store…." He suggested, with an added shudder. He turned and quickly walked away with Max & Ash instantly following his example.

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><p>They looked at a couple other stores, luckily without any repercussions of the first, but didn't find anything for Max. Finally though, they came across one that looked normal, and cool at the same time. Deciding they had nothing left to lose, they walked inside. As soon as they passed the threshold Max knew it was the right store. Apparently so did Ash, since they both said, "Yes!" at the same time.<p>

Seth grinned, "I Take it this is the one?" he questioned. The duo nodded in confirmation. "Alright then, I'll just be over here if you need me then." He said as he walked towards a bench on the side of the store. The other two were hardly paying attention as they waved him away.

"Alrighty," said Ash, "you know what to do! Let's go!"

Max nodded once and then they split up. Ash went towards the clothes while Max headed towards the accessories. Seth watched the process with interest, wondering what was going on, and 15 minutes later they both met up at the changing rooms with big piles of things in their hands. Ash dumped his pile on top of Max's and then she walked into a stall and closed the door. Outside you could hear the sounds of changing and putting things on, and when it went quiet a few minutes later Seth head Max exclaim, "Ash, it's perfect! Again!"

He started walking over as Max exited the stall. Her old outfit was completely gone, and in its place was a brand spankin' new change of clothes. She now wore dark blue-black jeans that had a big cargo pocket on the left side. Her new shirt was a royal purple color with the left sleeve a bit longer then the right and a vine pattern that went across the front in blue. On her right elbow was a cloth, guard-pad type thing. For the accessories she had a thick, studded brown belt, with chains running from the sides of the belt down and around to the back. She had a new buckle choker around her neck, black gel bands, and last but not least, she had surprisingly managed to find a strap-on holder for her knives. It was currently attached to her right thigh. All in all, it looked good.

Max's eyes were kind of sparkling when Seth finally got over to them. "Lookin' good." He told her. "Thanks!" she responded.

"One question," he added.

"Yeah?" answered Ash.

"Why'd you two split up? Why not let Max pick everything instead of just the accessories?" he asked, thoroughly confused, and curious.

They both laughed. "Well it turns out, Ash knows me so well he can pick out clothes I'd like even better than I can, so eventually we just started having him pick out the clothes and I got the accessories. It works better then you'd think, as you can see by my new outfit!" Max answered him.

Seth just shook his head, "Okay then, whatever works."

Ash chuckled, "Exactly. Alright, we got everything? Great, let's go eat!"

"YEAH!" Cheered the other two. The trio then started walking to the cash register to pay for Max's outfit, when Max, who was in front of Seth, pulled up short, making Seth run into her. "Ow, why'd you stop?" he whined. Max didn't answer though. Her eyes were trained on a jacket hanging from one of the racks ahead of them. "Ash," she said, with her eyes still on the jacket, "I'm getting one more thing."

Ash turned around to see her taking the jacket off the rack. He mentally sighed, _**"We're gonna go broke before Seth can pay us…" **_he thought with a pout. He could see why she liked it though. It was just her type. It was an acid wash gray color, made of thick cotton material, almost like a canvas. The sleeves, normally long, were rolled up to the elbows and there was a high collar with a strap the buckled the sides together. It had what looked like pads on the shoulder blades and was a zip-up instead of button. It also had a pocket on the right breast in addition to the normal two. _**"Yep,"**_ he thought, _**"just her type. She's in love."**_ He shook his head in pity and said, "Well, you coming? I'm not gonna let you get it if you take forever. I'm hungry woman!"

"I'm coming! I'm coming!" she answered quickly, grabbing the jacket and running past him to the checkout. Seth laughed at her enthusiasm while Ash followed her to the counter and they completed their purchase.

When the trio finally finished their shopping and exited the store, Max put on her new jacket and they went back to the center of the mall. "Foooooddd…" moaned Ash; as he trudged along pathetically. Max face-palmed and Seth rolled his eyes at their older companions' theatrics.

"Okay! We'll get you food! Please, just shut up! I Get to pick this time though 'cause you won yesterday." Stated Max with authority.

Ash sprung up immediately and shook his head up and down, "Yes, sure! Food!"

Max sighed in exasperation.

"Hey, I found a map!" called Seth. He had wandered over to the giant pillar map while the other two were talking. Ash quickly rushed over with Max walking behind him. They stretched over his should and all began to examine the map.

"There!" shouted Max, pointing to a place on the map, "That's where we're eating."

The boys looked at where her finger was pointing. "Delhi's Mediterranean Buffet? For real Maxi?" asked Ash with a skeptical look on his face.  
>She nodded firmly, ignoring the use of one of her many nicknames. Seth looked pleased by her decision however, "Great! I love Mediterranean food!" he said.<p>

"Thank you! See? You don't get an opinion here Ash." said Max, sticking her tongue out at him.  
>Ash rolled his eyes; "Fine, we'll eat the weird food..."<p>

Max laughed in triumph and turned to give Seth a high five, which he returned just as enthusiastically. Then, with Ash trailing a little behind, they set off to their dinner location.

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><p>"Ahhh...that was good." sighed Max, as she patted her stomach lightly. Seth, who was walking behind her, nodded happily in agreement. Ash was bringing up the rear with a disgusted look on his face. "No, that was horrible! All that garlic and lemon juice, just gag me!" he said, and faked throwing up at the last part for effect.<p>

Max turned to give him a small glare, "Didn't we already decide that your opinions were void? Shush now." She finished and turned around to keep walking in front. Ash rolled his eyes and attached a glare to the back of her head, but said nothing.

Seth laughed at them silently, still coming to terms with their strange relationship. They really were an interesting pair, in his eyes. He grew up with nobody like that. All the people he did know all had something to do with his father, wanted to use him, or they were helping him learn about his country. It was very annoying, and lonely, but he'd gotten used to it...a little. Well, nothing he could do about it now, and even though he was starting to really like Max and Ash, he knew that they were only helping him get back home and then they'd leave, just like all the others.

He sighed heavily out loud and Ash, who'd gotten ahead of him somehow, turned to him with an eyebrow raised. "Something wrong?" he asked.

Seth shook his head, "No, I'm ok." he covered.

Ash gave him a slightly disbelieving look, "Alright then, whatever you say." he turned and started walking forwards again, but after a minute or two he look over his shoulder and asked, "Did you really like that food? 'Cause it was pretty gross man."

Seth couldn't help it; he started laughing loudly and shook his head affirmatively before walking past a pouting Ash to catch up with Max. Yes, they were going to leave him too, but he'd enjoy their company while he could.

And so our trio finished their shopping day and returned to their hotel for a restful night of sleep before starting their adventure early in the morning. I wonder how that'll go. Hmm...?


End file.
